Disposable pallet structure



March 3, 1964 M. c. VOISSEM 3,123,020

I DISPOSABLE PALLET STRUCTURE Filed Jan. 14, 1960 INVENTOR. Mam/w C. 1/0/5551? ZZLMJQM A 7' TOKI E Y5 United States Patent 3,123,028 DISPUSABLE PALLET STRUCTURE Marvin C. Voissem, Menasha, Wis., assignor to Badger Plug Company, Appleton, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Filed Jan. 14, 1960, Ser. No. 2,422 3 Claims. (Ci. 1085l) This invention relates to a disposable pallet structure.

The invention is applicable to a pallet having either one or two decks, two being illustrated to exemplify the invention. The decks are preferably made of fiberboard, because that material is both disposable and relatively inexpensive. If expense is not a factor, the decks may be made of plywood or other material. As used herein, the word fiberboard is used generically to include materials variously referred to as chipboard, paperboard and even corrugated board, although the latter is not a preferred material.

In referring to the deck of a pallet, it is not my intention to exclude the possibility that the panel herein identified as a deck, for convenience of description, may carry some other structure of which it is a part.

For the support of the load-carrying deck, fiberboard tubes are employed. These tubes abut the deck at their ends and register with a hole cut through the deck.

As a preferred inexpensive and practical and very strong means of connecting this supporting tubular leg to the deck, I use a flanged metal anchorage fitting which extends through the hole of the deck and has a pressed fit within the tubular leg and, desirably, has prongs which are reversely directed to engage in the material of the tubular leg. This provides a positive lock connecting the parts together so that it is unnecessary to rely entirely upon the very strong frictional connection resulting from the pressed fit of the metal insert within the fiberboard tube. The margin of the deck about the hole therein is, of course, clamped between the end of the fiberboard tubular leg and the flange of the metal insert.

The hole in the deck should not be appreciably smaller than the interior diameter of the tubular leg, since it must pass the metal anchorage fitting which telescopically engages the leg. The hole cannot be as large as the external diameter of the leg, since the deck depends for support on its engagement with the ends of the respective legs. The clamping engagement of the legs with the deck also requires such engagement.

The portions of the insert which carry the flange and the prongs are generally cup-shaped but desirably include axially extending ribs whose ends project in the notches in the cup-shaped wall to provide the prongs, the flange which externally engages the deck being discontinuous by reason of such notches.

The connection of the legs with the bottom deck, if the bottom deck is used, is the same as above described.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective showing a pallet embodying the invention.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary detailview in plan on an enlarged scale, portions being broken away to show a part of the tubular leg in horizontal section.

FIG. 3 is a detail view taken in section on line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a detail view taken in section on line 4--4 of FIG. 2.

The deck 5 is supported by a plurality of tubular legs 6 which are mutually spaced and desirably have clearance to permit the forks of a lifting device to be entered between the legs either from the end or from the side of the deck. In registry with each of the tubular legs 6 the deck 5 has holes 7 which should be at least as large 3,123,626 Patented Mar. 3, i964 as the internal diameter of the inner wall surface 8 of the tubular leg and are desirably identical in diameter as shown.

The fitting 10 is used to provide not only a secure connection but internal bracing for the tubular leg 6 to hold it rigidly to the deck in a position at right angles thereto. The fitting 10 is generally cup-shaped having side wall portions 11 and a somewhat dished bottom 12 integral with the side wall. The side wall portions 11 have vertically extending ribs 15 extending upwardly from the bottom 12 and terminating at or slightly above the margins 16 of notches 17 with which the side wall portions 11 are provided. The upper end of each of the ribs 15 is desirably flared outwardly slightly as shown at 18 in FIG. 4 to provide a prong which will imbed itself in the fiberboard material of leg 6 when the parts are assembled. Between the several notches 17, the side wall portions 11 0f the metal insert or retainer 10 are flanged out- Wardly as shown at 20 for engagement with the deck 5 in opposition to the squarecut terminal end 21 of the tubular leg 6.

The dimensions of the anchorage fitting 10 are desirably such that the side wall portions 11 thereof can only be forced into the aperture 7 of the deck and the end of leg 6 under considerable pressure. The pressure is continued until the anchorage fitting is not only firmly engaged within the leg but its discontinuous flange 20 is tightly seated on the surface of the deck so that the deck is securely clamped against the leg.

If a lower deck 22 is used, an identical anchorage fitting 10 may be applied similarly to clamp the lower deck 22 to the lower end of the tubular legs. The ribs 15 will, in any event, form corresponding channels in the inner surface 8 of the fiberboard tube which constitutes the leg and the prongs 18 will engage the fiber to hold the anchorage leg securely in place and resist withdrawal thereof.

All of the several anchorage fittings required for assembly of a given pallet may be driven home simultaneously in a single press operation provided the press has a platen sufiiciently large to engage all of the fittings concurrently.

As compared with other pallets, the device herein disclosed is relatively inexpensive considering the weight which it will sustain. The weight is, of course, principally carried by the tubular legs 6 so that the deck or decks may be relatively light. The assembly operation is much more simple than is usually the case and, at the same time, the anchorage fittings not only connect the legs with the deck or decks but, as above noted, they provide internal support which tends to hold the legs securely in positions at right angles to the deck. Yet the anchorage fittings themselves are relatively inexpensive, these being the only metal parts employed.

I claim:

1. In a pallet the combination with a deck, of a plurality of mutually spaced supporting legs each comprising a tube, the deck having openings registering with the interior of each tubular leg and having margins overlying the ends of each such leg, and means for firmly clamping the deck to each of said tubular legs and comprising metal anchorage fittings having flanged portions marginally engaging the deck about said openings and having side wall portions integrally connected with the flanged portions and extending through the respective openings and telescopi cally engaged within upper end portions of the respective sides, means connecting said side wall portions with the legs against withdrawal, the said last mentioned means comprising axially extending outwardly projecting ribs with which the side wall portions of the respective fittings are provided, each of said side wall portions having notches exposing the upper ends of said ribs and the said upper ends of the ribs having the margins exposed by said notches flaring outwardly and embedded in the material of the tubular leg, the flanged portions of said fittings being in pressure engagement with marginal portions of the deck in opposition to the ends of the respective legs whereby the deck is clamped to the respective legs.

2. The device of claim 1 in which said pallet further includes a lower deck spaced from the deck first mentioned and butted by the lower ends of the respective legs, together with anchorage fittings clamping the lower deck to the lower ends of said legs and engaged with the lower deck and respective legs in the same manner in which the first mentioned fittings are engaged with the first mentioned deck and respective legs.

3. In a pallet construction for supporting a load the combination with a deck having a plurality of holes and a plurality of tubular legs of fiberboard material upon which the deck and its load are dependent for stable support, each leg having its end engaged with marginal portions of the deck and about one such hole, of means for tightly clamping said deck to each said leg and comprising a metal anchorage fitting having side wall portions extending rough the hole in the deck and engaged interiorly with the tubular leg and having flange portions externaily engaged with said marginal portions whereby the deck is clamped between said flange portions of the fitting and the end of the tubular leg, the side wall portions between said flanges having raw edges exposed within the leg and interlocked in the interior of the leg with the fibrous material of the leg, the interlock of said edges with the leg fiber constituting means for holding the fitting in the leg with its flange portions clamping the deck to the end of the leg, side wall portions of respective anchorage fittings being provided with notches extending down into the respective legs, the flange portions of such fittings being discontinuous and the notches being disposed between such fiange portions, the margins of the side Wall portions adjoining such notches providing the edges exposed with the leg, said side wall portions being further provided with ribs formed outwardly and embedded in 7 the respective legs, the ends of said ribs being included in the edges aforesaid.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 668,974 Buedingen Feb. 26, 1901 1,937,991 Clinton Jan. 15, 1935 2,049,334 Sobota July 28, 1936 2,244,975 Tinnerm'an June 10, 1941 2,267,126 Moretti Dec. 23, 1941 2,507,588 Brandon et al May 16, 1950 2,894,671 Nicholls July 14, 1959 2,918,241 Maher Dec. 22, 1959 

1. IN A PALLET THE COMBINATION WITH A DECK, OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY SPACED SUPPORTING LEGS EACH COMPRISING A TUBE, THE DECK HAVING OPENINGS REGISTERING WITH THE INTERIOR OF EACH TUBULAR LEG AND HAVING MARGINS OVERLYING THE ENDS OF EACH SUCH LEG, AND MEANS FOR FIRMLY CLAMPING THE DECK TO EACH OF SAID TUBULAR LEGS AND COMPRISING METAL ANCHORAGE FITTINGS HAVING FLANGED PORTIONS MARGINALLY ENGAGING THE DECK ABOUT SAID OPENINGS AND HAVING SIDE WALL PORTIONS INTEGRALLY CONNECTED WITH THE FLANGED PORTIONS AND EXTENDING THROUGH THE RESPECTIVE OPENINGS AND TELESCOPICALLY ENGAGED WITHIN UPPER END PORTIONS OF THE RESPECTIVE SIDES, MEANS CONNECTING SAID SIDE WALL PORTIONS WITH THE LEGS AGAINST WITHDRAWAL, THE SAID LAST MENTIONED MEANS COMPRISING AXIALLY EXTENDING OUTWARDLY PROJECTING RIBS WITH WHICH THE SIDE WALL PORTIONS OF THE RESPECTIVE FITTINGS ARE PROVIDED, EACH OF SAID SIDE WALL PORTIONS HAVING NOTCHES EXPOSING THE UPPER ENDS OF SAID RIBS AND THE SAID UPPER ENDS OF THE RIBS HAVING THE MARGINS EXPOSED BY SAID NOTCHES FLARING OUTWARDLY AND EMBEDDED IN THE MATERIAL OF THE TUBULAR LEG, THE FLANGED PORTIONS OF SAID FITTINGS BEING IN PRESSURE ENGAGEMENT WITH MARGINAL PORTIONS OF THE DECK IN OPPOSITION TO THE ENDS OF THE RESPECTIVE LEGS WHEREBY THE DECK IS CLAMPED TO THE RESPECTIVE LEGS. 